Telecommunication cables today are often pressurized to prevent entry of moisture. Pressurization is typically accomplished by forcing compressed dry air into the cable through a valve mounted on a splice case or end seal cap. End seals themselves are used to seal ends of cables temporarily prior to their being spliced together in the field while splice cases enclose and protect the splices once they have been made.
Pressurized telecommunication cables are comprised of a core formed of a number of insulated twisted wire pairs or quads. The core is surrounded by a metallic sheath or shield that provides electromagnetic, mechanical and lightening arrest protection for the core. An outer plastic jacket overlays the sheath. It is usually necessary to couple the metallic sheath with an electrical ground located exteriorly of the cable itself. Since it is not readily feasible to extend a conductive wire from the sheath through the cable jacket itself, while maintaining integrity of cable pressurization, such couplings of the jacket encapsulated cable sheaths with extrinsic grounding elements have typically been done through the closures themselves. In the case of splice case type closures such couplings of the sheaths with extrinsic grounding elements has been accomplished with the use of a stud that extends through the case wall. Electrical couplers are secured to each end of the stud to establish contact between the sheath and stud within the closure and between the stud and extrinsic grounding element exteriorly of the case. With end seals coupling has been effected by the use of a conductive wire that extends from the sheath through a tubular neck portion of the end seal cap which is sealed about the cable jacket.
Pressurized end seals equipped with grounding means of the type just described have proven to be leaky with leaks tending to occur where the conductive wires pass through the neck portion of the end caps over the cable jackets. That the wires have had to be of small gauge to minimize leak potential has also limited their current carrying capacity. With splice cases pressurization has not typically been a problem but rather the economics having to mold a stud into the body of the case.
Accordingly, there continues to exist a need to provide a pressurizable closure for a communication cable that includes means for effectively coupling a conductive element of the cable itself with extrinsic grounding means in an effective and efficient manner and without creating a potential for loss of pressurization. It is to this task to which the present invention is primarily directed.